Safety appliance for air-craft.



0 GAUL. SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR AIR CRAFT.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 11, 1911.

1,049,075 Patented Dec.31,1912.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1. f X

cuLummA PLANOCIRAPH co.. WASHINGTON, D. c.

O. GAUL.

SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR AIR CRAFT.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 11, 1911.

n n I e M h i l l IWHUHF I l H l'vwewtoz 055a) $02M arrow Witness M cuLtimBlA PLANOORAPH co WASHINGTON. D, c.

OSCAR GAUL,

OF CHICAGO,

ILLINOIS.

SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR AIR-CRAFT.

LOQQAWS.

Application filed November 11, 1911.

To all (rim/1L Z25 may concern:

Be it known that I, Oscar: GAUL, a citi Zen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cool: and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Safety Appliances for Air- Craft, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to safety appliances for air craft, and particularly to means for increasing the buoyancy of such craft, and insuring safety and easy descentto the ground in the event of damage to the vehicle or stoppage of the motor.

The object of the invention is to provide a novel construction and relative arrangement of propeller, propelling housing. and aerostat, whereby provision is made for supporting the aerostat in an effective manner, and an efficient type of aerostat is pro vided to increase the buoyancy and lifting power of the machine, as well as to enable a safe descent to be made when danger arises.

The invention consists of the features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a top plan view of a supporting surface of a flying machine, showing the application of my invention. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a side elevation. Fig. 4 is a vertical longi tudinal section.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates a portion of the main frame of a flying machine, from the center of which extend lateral wings 2 forming the supporting surface. Mounted beneath the center of the frame 1 on a line between the inner ends of the wings 2 is a bed or frame 3 to support the driving motor. Arranged upon the top of the supporting surface is a longitudinally extending, cylindrical drum or casing 4:, which forms a housing or inclosure for a spiral bladed propeller 5 mounted upon the shaft 6 suitably driven from the motor and journaled at its ends in cross bars or spiders 7 at the ends of the drum. The drum serves to protect the propeller from injury and at the same time forms an air channel lying parallel with the line of flight, within which a body of air is adapted to be temporarily confined Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 31,1912.

Serial No. 655,699.

for the action of the blades of the propeller thereon, whereby a maximum thrust is obtained and an increased working efliciency secured. V

Enveloping the upper portion and sides of the casing or drum 4 is an aerostat 8 which is composed of an expansible and collapsible body of balloon silk or other suitable fabric, the inner wall of which is secured to the bars 9 of a supporting frame structure 10 fastened to the periphery of the drum. The collapsible and expansible bodyis thus secured in position to the drum and is protected by the latter from possible injury from the propeller. The aerostat is preferably coextensive in length with the fore and aft width of the supporting surface, and the frame 10 extends beyond the ends of the drum togive said aerostat proper stability.

It will be observed that by this structure a substantially invert-ed U-shaped aerostat is provided which is reinforced fro-m the drum to resist air pressures and is arranged at a proper point to sustain the whole or the greater portion of the weight of the machine, whereby the buoyancy of the machine is increased, as well as its lifting power. If from any cause the wing structure should be damaged or the propeller rendered inoperative at any time in the flight of the machine, the latter will be sustained sufficiently by the aerostat to adapt it to be controlled and to descend safely and easily to the ground.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new is:

1. A flying machine including a main frame, a supporting surface carried thereby, and embodying laterally extending wings, a longitudinally extending drum or cylinder mounted upon said supporting surface above the main frame and between the wings, a propeller operating in said drum or cylinder, and a substantially inverted U-shaped aerostat partially sur rounding said cylinder and resting upon the adjacent portions of the wings.

2. A flying machine comprising a main frame, a supporting surface carried thereby and including laterally extending wings, a drum or cylinder extending longitudinally across the supporting surface above the main frame and between the wings, a shaft journaled in the ends of said drum or cylinder, a motor carried by the main faces and resting upon the adjacent p0rframe, gearing between said shaft and the tions of the wings. 10 motor, a spirally bladed propeller mounted In testimony whereof I aflix my signature on said shaft and operating in said drum or in presence of two Witnesses.

cylinder, and a substantially U-shaped in- OSCAR GAUL. verted aerostat partially surrounding said drum or cylinder and extending beyond the front and rear edges of the supporting sur- Witnesses:

ROBERT KIRQHNER, WALTER R. KOERNER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, 1). C. 

